Several days had passed since Suren emerged from Hephaestus's workshop. Early one morning, at the underground entrance of Babel.
Suren was adjusting the straps of his armor while Alise performed a final check on their supply list. The red-ponytail captain was in an exceptionally good mood today, humming a tuneless little melody to herself.
"Our goal for today is the Floor Boss, Goliath, deep within the seventeenth floor," Alise said, spreading out a map and pointing her finger at a specific marker.
Before the words could fully leave her mouth, a flurry of hurried footsteps interrupted her plans. Riveria practically burst into the entrance hall of the dungeon. The Elven royal, usually the personification of grace and composure, had strayed hairs out of place and eyes filled with an uncharacteristic, emerald-hued anxiety.
"Suren! Alise!" Riveria's voice carried a rare note of panic. "Have either of you seen Ais?"
Both turned at once. Suren keenly noticed that Riveria's gaze lingered on him for a split second longer than necessary—a look that held a complex mix of guilt and urgency alongside her worry.
"We had a massive argument last night. Ever since she lost to Suren at the Loki Familia's training grounds, she's been stuck in a slump. she's been far too eager for results, desperate to achieve a 'Great Deed' and level up to Level 2 as quickly as possible..."
Suren understood immediately. That sparring match had clearly dealt a significant psychological blow to the power-hungry Ais. "She left a note this morning saying she was heading into the dungeon alone to find her 'Great Deed.'"
"We're coming with you," Suren said without a moment's hesitation. The three of them stepped into the dungeon at a dead sprint.
Using [Detect Magic], Suren sensed an anomaly at the boundary between the thirteenth and fourteenth floors. "I found her. Two strong fluctuations... one is Ais, and the other... it's dark, chaotic, and carries a certain sense of profanity."
They charged down toward the fifteenth floor. The scene that greeted them was heart-wrenching: in a massive cavern, the young Ais Wallenstein stood with her sword drawn, facing off against a pitch-black winged dragon that radiated a foul, blasphemous malice. It was a "Black" creature—a product of Thanatos, the God of Death, designed specifically to hunt deities.
"Why be so stubborn, little girl?" Thanatos's voice rang out, slick with a greasy, seductive quality. "Look at the protectors behind you. They always weave cages out of kindness to bind your wings. Are you truly content with that?"
Ais was covered in wounds. Her white training clothes had been stained crimson with blood, yet she did not retreat. When Thanatos lost his patience and unleashed the invisible, crushing weight of his Divine Will, Ais's slender legs trembled, but her spine remained ramrod straight.
In that very moment, a power dormant deep within her bloodline was triggered.
"Call out to it," Riveria's calm voice cut through the Divine Will, acting as a beacon for Ais.
Ais closed her eyes. In her world, nothing remained but the "Wind." It was the blessing left behind by her mother, the Spirit Aria.
[Awaken] — there was no thunderous roar, only a quiet, steady whisper.
It was no longer a mere draft of air swirling around her blade, but a condensed, pale-green radiance. Ais snapped her eyes open, her amber pupils now swirling with emerald gusts of wind.
"Sweep them away."
Her figure vanished. Ais transformed into a gale, gliding effortlessly through the gaps in the Black Dragon's corrosive breath. After a sound like tearing silk, the dragon's hideous head slid from its body, dissolving into black dust.
Ais's form solidified beside the remains, a look of profound nostalgia and relief crossing her face.
The Great Deed was achieved here. She had not only defeated a powerful foe while being under-leveled, but she had also truly awakened and mastered the power that belonged to her in the midst of desperation: the Wind.
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Danmachi: My Magic Style is Different from Yours (90 Chapters – Ongoing)
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